Managing Integrated First-Line Support in Academic Libraries (Chandos Information Professional Series)

The academic library service environment is changing, higher education is becoming increasingly consumer-oriented and libraries are part of the institutional response to that trend. In particular, the experience of day-to-day interaction with library services is affected by this - student expectations have rightly increased and libraries in the U.K. and elsewhere are looking for ways of presenting their services in a joined-up student centric way. Managing Integrated First-Line Support in Academic Libraries offers answers to these challenges. The book begins by tracing the development of the student as customer, before defining support from a customer perspective. Next, it looks at the basis of an integrated first-line support service, the challenges and opportunities of staff recruitment and training, before looking at how to monitor service quality, and the use of technology in first-line support. Managing Integrated First-Line Support concludes with an eye to the future of integrated support.